Environmental Fridays Guest Speakers

2020 - 2021 environmental fridays guest speakers

2020 - 2021 environmental fridays guest speakers

Ann St. Amand – Careers in Environmental Science, 9/25/20
Ann St. Amand holds a B.S. in Ecology, Evolutionary and Population Biology from Purdue University and a Ph.D. in Aquatic Ecology from the University of Notre Dame. She has been the President and owner of PhycoTech, Inc, an environmental consultant company in St. Joseph, Michigan since 1990.

Matt Robbins – Government and the Environment, 10/2/20
Matt Robbins was hired by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in December of 1970, two weeks after the founding of this new agency on December 2, 1970. He has academic degrees in philosophy, a Masters degree in public administration and in theological studies and has done pre-doctoral work in environmental management and labor management relations.

Simone Charles – Environmental Justice – Soil Chemistry Case Study, 10/9/20
Simone Charles is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at University of Michigan with a doctorate in Environmental Chemistry and Toxicology; a postdoctoral fellowship in Environmental Health Sciences. She has several years’ experience working with academic-community partnerships to address health impacts of environmental hazard exposures on underserved rural and urban communities.

John (Jack) B. Giessner – Nuclear Energy & the Environment, 10/23/20
John (Jack) B. Giessner serves as the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Regional Administrator, Region III. Mr. Giessner joined the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in 2004 as a Reactor Engineer in Region III. Before joining the NRC, Mr. Giessner was an officer in the U.S. Navy and served on nuclear submarines, and worked on Operations for nuclear weapons. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Physics from the U. S. Naval Academy and a Master’s Degree in National Security Affairs from the Naval War College.

Padma P. Tadi Uppala - Your Health and the Environment, 10/30/20
Padma P. Tadi Uppala is the Chair of the School of Population Health, Nutrition & Wellness and Professor and  Director of Public Health Program at Andrews University. Uppala earned a Ph.D. in Tumor Biology with a focus on environmental carcinogenesis in 1991 and an MPH in Lifestyle Medicine from Loma Linda University. She has post-doctorate experience in environmental toxicology. Uppala’ research investigates the contribution of environmental factors to breast cancer, serum proteomic breast cancer biomarkers, dietary prevention of cancer, and community participatory research.

Laurel Berman – Brownfields I, 11/6/20
Laurel Berman is the National Brownfields Coordinator with the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Division of Community Health Investigations. Dr. Berman coordinates the ATSDR Land Reuse Health Program, which integrates public health and redevelopment from the early planning stages. Dr. Berman holds Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences from the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, with a focus on industrial hygiene and toxicology.

Nate Fuller  - Ground Water Quality and the Environment, 11/13/20
Nate Fuller is the Executive Director of Sarett Nature Center. He first worked at Sarett as a naturalist from 1995 to 2001 before returning as director in 2019. Nate received a bachelor’s degree in biology from Northland College in Ashland, Wisconsin and a master’s degree in geography with an emphasis in environmental and resource analysis from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo.

Coleen Fruin – Pollution and Wildlife, 11/20/20
Coleen Fruin has a Bachelors of Science degree in Wildlife Ecology and Management, from Michigan Technological University, completed in 2014. Before college, she went to a public high school in the south-west suburbs of Chicago. She has worked as a utility forester managing vegetation along power lines. Since then she is attending Michigan State University working on prerequisites for veterinary school. She enjoys studying the links between ecology, toxicology, and disease in wildlife.

Ninah Sasy  - Water Quality and Public Health, 12/4/20
Ninah Sasy serves as the Head of the Office of the Clean Water Public Advocate that was created through Governor Whitmer’s Executive Order 2019-06.  The Office of the Clean Water Public Advocate ensures that drinking water concerns across the state of Michigan are investigated, analysed and that solutions are implemented. Ninah Sasy comes to the Office of the Clean Water Public Advocate with an extensive background in public health, emergency response, and strategic planning.  Ninah began her career with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services as the Chemical Threat Laboratory Exercise Coordinator. With a Master of Science in Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Clinical Laboratory Science, Ninah brings a solid base of academic knowledge to support her experience and is committed to serving as an advocate to Michigan residents.

Dale LeCaptain  - Great Lakes Water Quality, 12/11/20
Dale LeCaptain completed his undergraduate degree in Chemistry from University Wisconsin LaCrosse (1994) and his PhD in Analytical Chemistry from Michigan State University in 1999. After Post-Doctoral experience at both Michigan State and Colorado State University he joined Central Michigan University in 2001. As Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry he instructs Analytical Chemistry at all levels and was instrumental in the design of the Environmental Chemistry Concentration now available.

Erin Fuller – Effects of Agriculture on Water Quality, 1/15/21
Erin Fuller is the watershed coordinator for the Van Buren Conservation District in Paw Paw, Michigan. She has been creating and implementing conservation projects in this role for 17 years. Erin enjoys working with landowners and partners from all backgrounds and experiences to protect and restore our natural heritage. Her projects range from conservation planning at regional scales to practical applications of on-the-ground management techniques with local landowners. Erin has a BA in Biology from Skidmore College (NY) and a MA in Geography from Western Michigan University.

Motria Caudill – Air Pollution, 1/22/21
Motria Caudill is an Environmental Health Scientist at the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), which is a part of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and an adjunct associate professor at University of Illinois at Chicago, School of Public Health (UIC-SPH). Dr. Caudill’s work has taken her to India, Viet Nam, and Ukraine, to conduct research projects and train local specialists. She holds Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences from UIC-SPH, with a focus on toxicology, risk assessment, and air quality management.

Mary Reynolds – Indoor Pollution, 1/29/21
Mary Reynolds works at the Environmental Protection Agency in the Region 4 office located in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a Physical Scientist and Radon Coordinator in the Communities and Air Toxics Section in the Air and Radiation Division. Mary graduated from Tulane University with a B.S.P.H. in Public Health and a B.S. in Earth and Environmental Science. Before starting her career with EPA, she was a Peace Corps community health volunteer in Uganda.

Heidi LeSane – Indoor Pollution, 1/29/21
Heidi LeSane works at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region 4 Air and Radiation Division, and she is a Life Scientist and the Asthma Program Coordinator for the Southeastern states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.  Heidi has a focus to decrease the number of asthmatics exposed to indoor environmental asthma triggers and to educate individuals on the environmental management of asthma. Heidi LeSane is a proud graduate of Auburn University at Montgomery with a B.S. in Biology and has her Masters of Public Administration in Environmental Management from Troy State University.

Motria Caudill – Climate Change, 2/5/21
Motria Caudill is an Environmental Health Scientist at the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), which is a part of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and an adjunct associate professor at University of Illinois at Chicago, School of Public Health (UIC-SPH). Dr. Caudill’s work has taken her to India, Viet Nam, and Ukraine, to conduct research projects and train local specialists. She holds Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences from UIC-SPH, with a focus on toxicology, risk assessment, and air quality management.

Marc Florian  - Brownfields II, 2/12/21
Marc Florian is Vice President of Environmental Consulting & Technology, Inc. located in Benton Harbor, Michigan. He graduated from Mississippi State University with a BS in Geology/Petroleum, and went on to secure an MS from Michigan State University in Geology/Stratigraphy and MBA in Strategic Marketing from the University of Houston. For more than 30 years, Mr. Florian has worked as a professional service contractor under various state-sponsored clean-up initiatives and contracts. Florian has authored more than 100 brownfield redevelopment plans, and served as technical advisor to state agencies and legislators in the conceptualization and implementation of strategies aimed at incentivizing brownfield redevelopment.

Denise Chow - Environmental Stories, 2/19/21
Denise Chow is general science and environmental issues journalist for NBCUniversal. See her work at: https://muckrack.com/denise-chow.